The National Defense Ministry has stated that last week’s fatal gas exposure that killed 12 soldiers during a cave search in northern Iraq was the first of its kind since the cross-border operations began in the region.
In a press briefing today, ministry officials said no similar incidents involving gas exposure had occurred in the "Claw" (Pençe) operations launched in 2019 against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militant group, as reported by the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA).
Nineteen soldiers were hospitalized after being exposed to methane has while searching a cave believed to be belonging to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) at a location named "Hill 852" in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) territory. Five of them died on the same day and and seven others died a day later.
The ministry emphasized that more than 3,700 caves and shelters had been located and neutralized in the area over the years, with no previous record of troops being affected by toxic gases. “This was an exceptional, unforeseeable event,” officials said.
Notably, the incident occurred as the PKK is planned to hold a symbolic disarmament ceremony in KRG territory as part of the ongoing peace initiative.
The operation
The fatal exposure took place during a mission to recover the body of Infantry Lieutenant Nuri Melih Bozkurt, who was killed in a 2022 operation in the same area.
Soldiers entered the cave in groups after reconnaissance efforts, but began to collapse while searching its lower level, according to the officials. Subsequent rescue attempts led to additional personnel being affected, despite efforts to extract them.
The ministry has requested technical support from disaster and mining agencies. Tests detected carbon monoxide, methane, and hydrogen sulfide inside the cave, with oxygen levels dropping below safe thresholds. Recovery of the final seven bodies was completed after ventilation efforts.
Officials denied reports circulating on social media that soldiers lacked gas masks or proper equipment, and refuted claims of a cave collapse or the presence of chemical weapons or explosives.
“Such claims are entirely unfounded,” they stated adding that an administrative investigation is ongoing to determine the source of the gas and the sequence of events. (VK)
